Colton shuffled over, his eyes ringed with deep shadows, cradling a cup of coffee in his hand as if it were a lifeline.
The early call time was a brutal challenge for everyone on set.
âEver feel like youâre the only one who remembers, while everyone else acts like it never happened?â
he asked.
Ivy nodded in agreement.
âThey must be struggling to digest it, right? An A-list actress they all believed in pulled a stunt that couldâve tanked her careerâ¦â
Ivyâs tone was nonchalant. With Giselleâs arrest, she shouldâve felt a sense of relief, but Balfourâs shadow over her mood didnât let that happen.
Still, the crew should be able to catch up a bit more without Giselleâs interruptions in the meantime.
Colton raised an eyebrow, impressed by Ivyâs composure.
He had half-expected her to stomp Giselle into the ground when she got the chance. Instead, Ivy hadnât made a move, seemingly uncorrupted by the vices of the entertainment business.
Behind her stood the entire Howard family. If Ivy wanted to, she could use their resources to ensure Giselle never bounced back. Clearly, she hadnât given it much thought.
âI thought youâd be over the moon with Giselle out of the picture,â he mused aloud.
Ivy shot Colton a look. âWhy would you think that? Oh, right. You all assume thereâs some epic feud between us, that she had it out for me for no reason. Thereâs an old saying, âYou canât con an honest man.â Even with Giselle gone, people suspect thereâs something off about me too. Why else would she target me, right?â
Ivyâs laugh was tinged with sarcasm.
At that moment, she saw the true colors of her coworkers. She wasnât there to make friends, and she couldnât expect too much from them.
âYouâre right,â Colton admitted, âbut in the entertainment business, people learn to pick \sides quickly.
Iâm not telling you to forgive them, just that you should understand itâs a common workplace phenomenon. Itâs just how it is.â
Ivy nodded, signaling her grasp of the unspoken rules.
Colton downed his black coffee in one gulp and grimaced. âBitter as hell. Iâve been drinking this stuff for years and still canât fathom how anyone finds it tasty. But even though I donât get it, I canât work without it. No energy, no good films, right?â
Making a hit film was every directorâs dream-critical acclaim and box office success. Without the latter, a directorâs commercial value plummeted.
Ivy observed Colton, who seemed more exhausted than ever since sheâd joined the production.
Despite his reputation as a top notch director, he appeared caged, his talents constrained, expressing only a fraction of what he was truly capable of.
He turned to Ivy, their eyes meeting. âAlright, letâs get ready to rollâ
Ivy had intended to call the makeup artist to brighten her complexion. The early start combined with her sour mood had left her looking less than ideal for the scriptâs demands.
But Colton waved it off.
âKeep your look for the morning scene. Itâll work, especially for the one where you find out about David leaving.â
The actor playing David, Ryan, who landed the lead role, had fought tooth and nail for the part